Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and problems for Geology

Factors Influencing the Peninsular Rivers

The characteristics of peninsular rivers are influenced by several factors, including:

• Climate: Rainfall and temperature patterns significantly impact river flow.
• Relief: The topography of the land affects the direction and speed of water flow.
• Lithology: The underlying rock type influences water absorption and erosion.
• Vegetation: Plant life can affect water flow and sediment levels.
• Human Action: Activities such as dam construction and irrigation alter river regimes.

River regimes can be classified as rain-fed, snow-fed, or a combination of both (mixed).

Basin Types

• Exorheic Basin: Characterized by water flowing into the open sea.
• Endorheic Basin: Refers to landlocked water bodies.
• Arheic Basin: Describes areas

Biodiversity in Spain

Location: Southwest Europe. Spain has two large biogeographic regions: Atlantic and Mediterranean. The Canary Islands have a tropical climate. The Iberian Peninsula served as a refuge during glaciations. Many animal and plant species evolved, forming new species. The presence of mountain ranges allows species to reproduce at high altitudes, creating a gradation between northern and southern Europe.

Human Impact on Biodiversity

Biodiversity has been affected by human actions, which have transformed the natural landscape (forests replaced by arable fields, etc.). This has led to a loss of vegetation and an increase in urban and industrial sites.

Landscapes of Plants

Oceanic Plant Landscape

Found in the Galician and Biscay regions.... Continue reading "Spain's Biodiversity: Habitats and Threats" »

Weathering of Rocks by Atmospheric Agents

Clasts are fragments of rock torn from a larger rock mass. The fragmentation of rocks is caused by atmospheric agents such as rain and snow. These agents wet the rock, dissolving minerals and reacting with them. Temperature changes also contribute: the expansion of rocks as the sun heats them contrasts with the contraction caused by freezing. Water seeps into cracks in rocks, subjecting them to pressure during freezing (gelifraction).

Weathering is the set of processes due to atmospheric agents that produce the alteration and disintegration of rocks.

• Mechanical Weathering: The rock is fragmented due to expansion and contraction, the freezing of water, or the impact of falling rocks.
• Chemical Weathering:

1. Geological Processes: Origin and Types

1.1 External Geological Processes

• Source:
  • Solar energy
• Type:
  • Weathering: Action of the atmosphere
  • Erosion: Separation of fragments and soil disturbance
  • Transport: Movement of these fragments in favor of gravity

1.2 Internal Geological Processes

• Source:
  • Geothermal energy inside the Earth
• Type:
  • Orogenic Movements: Horizontal displacement
  • Epirogenic Movements: The rise and decline with increasing mass of the Earth's crust

2. Plate Tectonics

• Structure based on geochemical and dynamic models:

• Source of plate movement:
  • Two scenarios:

1. Convection currents or flaring rims creating constructive

Wilson Cycle

1. Hot mantle materials rise, causing the crust to fracture due to its rigidity. The fractures allow magma to output, and blocks of the lithosphere move, initiating the formation of an intracontinental rift valley.
2. The expansion of the ocean floor creates a narrow sea.
3. The growth of the seafloor allows the development of a mature ocean basin. Stable continental margins are limited by the basin's floor, where an important place of sediment deposition occurs.
4. The stable continental margins become active when the oceanic lithosphere begins to sink in subduction.
5. The reduction of the ocean is very evident. Marginal ranges are formed on active continental margins.
6. The oceanic lithosphere continues to subduct and sink until the ocean is completely

Classifying Energy Sources

Non-Renewable Energy

Energy sources available in limited quantities that are consumed much faster than they form.

Fossil Fuels

• Coal: A mineral fossil fuel originating from the decomposition of buried plant matter, accumulated over millions of years. Today, it's primarily used as fuel to produce thermal energy.
• Oil: A thick, dark, oily liquid formed from the decomposition of plant and animal remains buried for millions of years. It has a high calorific value, is relatively easy to extract and transport, and is used to generate electricity and produce materials like plastics and paints.
• Natural Gas: Has a similar origin and formation process to oil, often found together in deposits (jaciments). It's used as fuel or as a feedstock

Coastal Landforms

Coastal Dunes

Besides being in the desert, dunes can also form in coastal areas.

Coastal Dynamics

Coastal Erosion

Coastal relief is modeled by the action of waves, tides, and coastal currents. Waves constantly erode rocky shore areas. By hitting the weakest areas, they form caves, which can cause the gradual erosion of rocks. The resistance of rocks to erosion provokes the formation of arches. The remaining areas are gaps and islets. Rocks erode more easily when they are softer, which can lead to the formation of bays.

Coastal Sedimentation

Sand flats are made of material torn from the cliffs by the waves, materials transported by rivers, and shell fragments left by organisms. The larger sediments are deposited at the bottom of the... Continue reading "Coastal and Karst Landforms" »

The Organization

The organization is a graphical representation of the formal structure of a company. Classes of organization are divided according to:

• Information: Intended to provide an overview of the company.
• Structure-analytical charts: Designed to understand the total structure, including organizational units, reflecting the integrated relationships.

Extension

• General organization: Reflects the overall organizational structure of the company.
• Organization: Concerns a specific business department.

Content

• Organizational Structure: Represents the various units of the company and its relationships.
• Organizational Functionals: Represents the functions of each organizational entity.
• Personal: Indicates the units represented, their rank, and the name

Bathroom Safety Zones

Understanding V0, V1, V2, and V3 Zones

V0 Zone

With Bathtub or Shower Head: Inside the bathtub or shower enclosure.

Without Shower Head and with Fixed Plate: Bounded horizontally by the edges of the plate and vertically from the floor to 0.05m above the floor.

With Movable Shower Head: Bounded by a vertical plane with a 1.2m radius around the water outlet, effectively enclosing the area intended to be occupied by the user.

With Fixed Shower Head: Bounded by a vertical plane with a 0.6m radius around the shower head.

V1 Zone

Extends horizontally 2.25m from the V0 zone and vertically from the floor to 2.25m above the floor. This includes the space accessible without tools.

With Movable Shower Head: Limited by a vertical plane with... Continue reading "Bathroom Safety Zones for Shower and Tub Installations" »

Stone Age: The materials Palaeolithic people used to make their first tools belonged to a set of rocks and minerals with little variety, but with certain properties in common: hard, tough, fragile, and exhibiting a conchoidal fracture. The variety lies in their composition of silicon compounds. In some areas where materials were inaccessible, siliceous stems were used, such as caliza. At first, these tools were crude, but later the technique was perfected to fabricate more complex tools. In the Lower Paleolithic, fire was discovered. This allowed humans to move from simple exploitation and the precarious nature of processing activities. With Homo sapiens came the apogee of Paleolithic technology, developing "carving techniques" and using other... Continue reading "Stone Age to Metal Age: Tools, Materials, and Technological Advancements" »